Supertanker ablaze in the Strait of Hormuz, fresh raid on Aramco sites
West Bank: Israeli settlers attack a convoy of European diplomats. The attack took place in the village of Taybeh during the olive harvest. Clashes have also been reported between some Israeli civilians and several Palestinians in the Beit Lid area, where one Israeli was injured.
The Hormuz trap. Two supertankers carrying over two million barrels of oil caught fire after striking mines, whilst at the same time Houthi attacks, backed by Tehran, kept Saudi forces occupied in the Riyadh region and the eastern part of the kingdom, where Aramco’s oil facilities were once again “hit by a fire”. Against this explosive backdrop, the Yemeni rebels themselves have in turn denounced a massacre carried out by the Saudis in the Taiz area and in the province of Dhamar, with twelve victims, including three children.
It was the Pasdaran Navy which, in the early hours of the morning, announced that a “illegal oil tanker” carrying over 2 million barrels of crude oil, which was attempting to cross the Strait of Hormuz on an unauthorised route, had been involved in an incident following “an explosion”. Then, in the late afternoon, the Revolutionary Guards themselves reported that another oil tanker, also carrying over two million barrels of crude oil, had caught fire after striking mines, again in the Strait of Hormuz.
The stretch of sea separating the Gulf monarchies from Iran, which claims control of this strategic waterway, through which a fifth of the world’s hydrocarbons used to pass before the war unleashed in late February by Israel and the US, has now become a deadly trap for vessels attempting to cross it. According to the Wall Street Journal, Tehran is continuing to support the Houthis in launching increasingly powerful and sophisticated attacks against Saudi Arabia and its Yemeni allies – such as last week’s attack in Riyadh, which left 13 people dead – thereby tightening the pincer grip on the Wahhabi Kingdom.
West Bank: Israeli settlers attack convoy of European diplomats
According to the Times of Israel, citing Army Radio, vehicles carrying diplomats from France, Belgium and Poland were attacked by Israeli settlers in the village of Taybeh whilst they were harvesting olives.
The Israeli army has stated that it condemns the “serious” attack carried out today by settlers against European diplomats in the West Bank, whilst pointing out, however, that the visit had not been coordinated with the armed forces. “The IDF strongly condemns the serious act of violence that took place in the Taybeh area, during which diplomatic representatives were attacked by Israeli troublemakers,” the army said.
The armed forces have reported that police officers are entering the area, escorted by the IDF, to gather evidence and witness statements for the purposes of the investigation. “The consulate’s visit had not been co-ordinated with the IDF,” the army said, adding that “such co-ordination is important to prevent incidents of this kind”.
